Posts By: Cynthia Frebet

About Cynthia Frebet

Part of the WEX team since 2014, Cynthia is responsible for taking care of some of our largest travel customers. With a background in B2B payments, Cynthia’s proactive approach and attention to detail helps ensure we surpass the expectations of our customers in meeting their business goals. Cynthia has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Management from European Business School, Paris.

Hotels and OTAs are offering short-term rentals and Airbnb is listing hotel rooms. Why? This spring, Airbnb’s managing director for Europe, Middle East and Africa, Jeroen Merchiers, told a Skift Forum Europe audience, “The concept of home sharing and staying in a flat instead of hotel room is something that people want. It’s not just millennials anymore—it’s pretty much everybody.” Phocuswright shared research early last… Read more »

All-inclusive vacations have come a long way from the long buffet lines and less-than-stellar accommodations of twenty years ago. The all-inclusives of today provide everything from great food to romantic getaways to family friendly fun – with the ease and convenience of having everything at one price, and usually one place. The hottest trend in the category, though, goes in a surprising new direction –… Read more »

The flurry of recent acquisitions and investments has made it clear – the tours and activities sector is now even more attractive to OTAs. Some of the largest players, including Booking.com, Expedia, TripAdvisor, Ctrip and Airbnb, have either purchased companies or expanded their tour and activities offerings. A 2017 Phocuswright report on tours and activities states, “For tours and activities (T&A) to come of age,… Read more »

WEX and Mastercard recently partnered on a survey of US travelers, identifying attitudes and preferences across a range of travel topics. The 2018 Travel Trends Report confirmed travelers’ accommodation selections are changing, and it found some interesting differences between the generations. “The evolution of the sharing economy, particularly within accommodations, has made it possible for segments like Gen Z and Millennials to travel more frequently… Read more »

Climate and weather are key factors when deciding where to visit, what to do while you’re there, how much you’ll enjoy the trip, and sometimes, how safe you’ll be. When booking a trip, tourists plan for a destination’s general climate, but during their trip they’ll be affected by the specific weather at that time, which may be very different. As temperatures increase around the world,… Read more »

Major hotel brands have been aggressively pushing their travel loyalty programs over the past few years. And, at the same time, Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) have rolled out new or improved rewards programs. Is all this effort impacting the number of “loyal” travelers? Do these programs still matter? Brandie Wright, Phocuswright analyst, reports, “Half of US leisure travelers now belong to a hotel loyalty program,… Read more »